Nation Extra-judicial justice? Posted by: Our Reporter in Editorial 5 hours ago Thorough investigation needed to unravel how UNIBEN student was killed Such is the promotional catchphrase that says “ Police is your friend”, which sounds like a bad joke in the light of developments in the controversy surrounding the death of Ibrahim Momodu, a final-year student of Science Laboratory Technology at University of Benin (UNIBEN). Following the exhumation of his corpse, which was allegedly hurriedly buried by policemen in a cover-up, there are indications that he was killed extra-judicially, contrary to the police account that he died from gunshot wounds inflicted on him to ease his arrest. Examination of Momodu’s body reportedly revealed that he was shot thrice on his back, exposing the falsehood publicised by the police that he was shot in the legs. This chilling discovery, suggesting that the deceased was shot from behind, suddenly and unexpectedly, stamped a huge question mark on the modus operandi of the police. In the circumstances, it seemed a function of conscience, even if repressed, that the police statement presented a distorted version of events that left its operatives blameless. It was a predictable projection of innocence, but the evidence points towards the opposite. If there was nothing to hide, why did the police hastily bury Momodu , rather than rationally exploiting the evidence of his body to prove the allegation that he was a dangerous robber? Where was conscience when Momodu was shot? According to the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Moses Eguavoen, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), “On May 27, 2013 about 8.20pm, operatives at Ogida Division led by the DPO, while on routine patrol within the area intercepted a cyclist and another with an unregistered motorcycle at Obayuwana Junction on Siluko Road, Benin City.” He said further in a statement, “The suspect immediately brought out a Russian made cut-to-size double barrel gun, but the policemen, noticing his action, responded swiftly and shot the suspect later known as Ibrahim Momodu who died on his way to the hospital.” At the centre of the shooting was Mrs Carol Afegbua, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) and the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Ogida Police Station, Benin, who allegedly shot Momodu. It is worth noting that she apparently defended her action and continued the calumniation of the dead on her Facebook page, saying, “ Does this portray the image of a student…guns and riding of an unregistered motorcycle at 22:30hrs, attempting to shoot a policeman, a new syllabus for university students?” It is fascinating to observe that Afegbua’s femininity failed to mediate throughout the encounter with Momodu. It is curious that there is a marked temporal inconsistency in these police angles; the times of occurrence given by Eguavoen and Afegbua do not agree. Also, these accounts imply that what happened was an on-the-spot prosecution and summary judgment against Momodu, well beyond the framework of the law. Whatever happened to the principle of fairness, by which a suspect is regarded as innocent until found guilty within a legal context? On the part of the police, contempt for the rule of law, which defines separate roles for the organs of government, is an inescapable charge in this incident. There are other deeply disturbing dimensions to this matter, considering the unmistakable brutality and arbitrariness on the part of the police. When the force, which is expected to uphold the law, becomes symbolic of lawlessness, such ironic criminality can do society no good; in addition, it compounds the negative image of the force and spoils its case that institutional redemption is possible. As things stand now, with protests over Momodu’s death conflicting with the justificatory police position, there is a clear and urgent need for an independent and thorough probe into the dark incident. What happened that night? Did the police act properly and fairly? Was the cause of justice pursued within the ambit of the law? These questions are begging for answers.
Posted on: Fri, 14 Jun 2013 08:18:02 +0000
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